Conveying the meanings of the definite and indefinite articles.

The article, both the definite and indefinite, is a functional word serving to identify or determine the noun (cf. to work-the work), the superlative degree of its quality (the tallest tree) or the order of nouns in a word-group (the first step) or in a row of similar nouns.

The definite article when endowed with the lexical meaning in a sentence or passage can have various realizations in Ukrainian. It is expedient to begin with the most common of them which may refer not only to nouns but to other parts of speech as well, as for example:

1) as the demonstrative pronoun цей (ця, це, ці):

What his sister has seen in the man was beyond him. - Що його сестра знайшла у цьому чоловікові, він не зміг збагнути.

2) as the demonstrative pronouns такий (той, та, те, ті), той самий, (саме той, та сама), такий самий:

The fellow behind us in the crowd was talking again. (E.Caldwell)- Той самий хлопець із натовпу позад нас тепер озвався знову.

3) as the possessive pronoun //', їхні, свій (своя, своє, свої):

The room was situated over the laundry...- Його кімната була/ знаходилась над пральнею...

4) as the identifying pronoun весь, вся, все/цілий:

Не looked up, and it seemed that the room was lifting...- Він підвів голову, і йому здалося, що вся кімната ходить ходором...

5) as the relative pronoun який (яка, яке, які):

She did not know the actual fire of love. - Вона не знала, яке то справжнє полум'я коханая.

6) as the indefinite pronoun якийсь (якась, якесь), певний:

7) as the identifying attributive pronoun сам, сам собою, інший/:

The toil meant nothing to him.- Сама собою праця нічого не важила для нього.

8) as an adjective or adjectivized participle:

Martin Eden did not go out to hunt for a job in the morning.- Мартін Іден не пішов наступного ранку шукати роботи.

9) as a particle emphasizing the attributive pronoun, numeral or some other part of speech:

But the story was grand just the same, perfectly grand.- А так це оповідання -чудове, ну просто чудове.

10) very often when the noun in the sentence has another attribute the clearly explicit lexical meaning of the definite article remains superflous:

He lay where he had fallen, and from there he watched the man in the red sweater.- Він лежав, де впав, і звідти спостерігав за чоловіком у червоному светрі.

 

Strange as it may seem but very often, almost predominantly, the indefinite article is endowed in speech/text with lexical meanings, which may coincide with those of different pronouns. The most
frequent and common of these meanings can be expressed, as has been mentioned already, in one of the following ways:

1) by the cardinal numeral один (одна, одне):
He said something about а schooner that's gettin' ready to go off - Він тут розповідав щось про одну шхуну, яка готується відпливати.

 

2) By the indefinite pronoun якийсь only, without the attendant meanings of the cardinal or ordinal numerals:
He saw her come down the aisle, with Arthur and a strange young man.- Він бачив, як вона пройшла партером у супроводі Артура і ще якогось незнайомого молодика.

 

3) when the lexically meaningful indefinite article precedes the
noun under logical stress, it functions as the demonstrative pronoun,
which is translated into Ukrainian as цей, ця, це:

 

This was his programme for а week. (J. London)- Це була його програма на цей тиждень.

 

4) As one of the possessive "pronouns (according to their con­textual meaning):

When she returned with the grammar, she drew a chair near his. (Ibid.)- Коли вона (Рут) повернулася з граматикою, вона присунула свій стілець до його стільця.

5) As the negative pronoun жоден or the negative perticle ані
(when the determined noun is preceded by the negative particle not): You were not following а word.- Ви не чули жодного слова/ ані слова.

6) as the relative adjective цілий which is lexically equivalent
in the sentences below to the Ukrainian identifying pronoun весь
(вся, все): It is sweet to feel that you are really and truly a woman.- Приємно відчувати (себе), що ти є справжньою жінкою.

23. THE SITUATIONAL, HISTORICAL AND CULTUREAL CONTEXTS IN PRAGMATIC TRANSLATION. 2 TYPES OF PRAGMATICS: THE PRAGMATICS OF LINGUISTIC SIGNS AND THE PRAGMATICS OF INDIVIDUAL SPEECH. THE CONCEPT OF “PRAGMATIC VALUE”

The communicative effect of the speech does not depend on the meaning of its components alone but involves considerations of the situational context and the previous experience. E.g. a report that John has run a hundred metres in 9 seconds ----- will be unnoticed by some people and create a sensation among those who happen to know that it is wonderful record-breaking achievement.

Also the great role is played in the historical and cultural background of different language communities, in their customs, and living conditions. It stands to reason that our women can hardly be impressed by the statements that they are as wise as snake or as patient as a camel. In this case our women will take these statements not as as an offence but as a compliment.

The pragmatics of linguistic sign is a meaningful element whose preservation is desirable at any level of equivalence. It is reproduced in translation if the TR gets the whole information about the pragmatic aspect of the original text and the pragmatics of the original text is just as accessible and understandable to him as it is to the SR

The pragmatics of individual speech is also present in translation event where that very Translation event is a kind of speech act, which is performed with a certain pragmatic purpose.

Pragmatic value implies translation loyalty to the original and its ability to achieve the purpose for which it has been undertaken. The pragmatic value assesses its success in achieving the pragmatic super purposes.